2018 Eurovision Reviews – Lithuania

Lithuania sure know how to hold a lengthy national final, and this year was no exception of that, with their Eurovizijos format dragging on for no less than 3 months – and perhaps 3 months too many. These lengthy efforts in recent years has yielded mixed results for the nation, with certain entries qualifying to the final, but an unlucky handful remained in the semi-finals. After a non-qualification last year, it’s up to Ieva Zasimauskaitė to turn things around with her sensitive entry, When We’re Old, but will it be lost in the line-up?

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen Ieva attempt to represent Lithuania at Eurovision, having participated in the national final in 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017, but this is her year, and it seems that this entry has been dividing fans since her selection. It’s a very understated entry, and alongside Ireland this year, is one of the most sensitive entries of the year. Sometimes the problem with understated is that it can border on dull, and for me, this unfortunately is right on the border.

I think Ieva has a stunning voice, and there’s no denying that, but I just haven’t been able to get on board with this song. I think if it had built into a bigger final minute, I could have liked this more, but in a way it feels like a 3 minute intro to a bigger song. I love the simplicity of it, but it’s a double edged sword as it’s the simplicity that’s stopping me from really connecting with this. Although I’m not the biggest fan of the song, it seems that it’s definitely grown a fan base, especially now that we’ve seen her perform on the promo scene at Eurovision pre-parties, where she’s impressed audiences with her magical voice.

For me, this is her saving grace. Without a voice like this, her song may have faded into nothingness. Unfortunately, the running order has done her no favours either, having been placed in between the boisterous entries of Czech Republic and Israel, both hot favourites of this year’s competition. Because of this, it could easily be lost between the two, but alternatively, it could stand out since it’s just so different to what both of those nations are presenting. I think the staging will also be incredibly different from those two, and I suspect they will stick with a simple theme to match the nature of the song, and this could potentially lift the song to a new level as well.

All aboard… the understated train!

Seeing how successful she has been on the promo scene means that I can’t for certain say this won’t qualify to the final, but being in the first semi-final, it will take some of the big favourites to fall for this to sneak through. It could be the surprise package, but for me personally, it’s not my cup of tea.

Our rating: 5/10

If you support Lithuania at Eurovision, make sure to vote for Ieva in our poll! Watch her official video below, and follow our Eurovision 2018 playlist on Spotify.